Top Out on OHSU Knight Cancer Institute Research Building
The construction joint venture team of McCarthy and Andersen Construction (McCarthy/Andersen), along with Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and SRG Partnership, recently celebrated a major milestone in the construction of the new OHSU Knight Cancer Institute Research Building. Construction workers, designers, engineers, employees, physicians, community members and donors gathered to sign the steel beam before it was hoisted atop the $190 million research and development conference center facility.
“The Knight Cancer Institute will advance cancer research to its highest level with this leading-edge laboratory facility designed to support “team science” by encouraging collaboration and sharing of ideas through program adjacencies, open offices and ample meeting spaces, both casual and formal,” said McCarthy Project Executive Tim Albiani. “Our project team engaged in a similar mindset by employing a collaborative design and construction process through a customized integrated project delivery model. The cohesive environment, highlighted by our on-site co-location facility, combined with tools such as virtual reality and the use of lean construction methodology, have been instrumental in allowing us to reach our full potential as an integrated design and construction team.”
The McCarthy/Andersen partnership brings together extensive and diverse experience in the research and laboratory market and combines renowned Portland-based builder Andersen with the resources and collaborative project delivery expertise of esteemed national firm McCarthy. To achieve the building structure topping-off milestone, McCarthy/Andersen worked with a number of local subcontractors, including Andersen Structures, Cherry City Electric, TCM, J.H. Kelly, Western States Fire Protection, McDonald Excavating and Raimore Construction, a local minority-owned business that was responsible for the management of fabrication and erection of the steel.
“This project presented a great opportunity to combine forces with local trade partners who were eager to participate on a highly collaborative delivery model for a complex project,” said Stefanie Becker, Director of Integrated Design with McCarthy. “On the job site, we were surrounded by a diverse and talented workforce, and it was exciting to look around and see a lot of women placing steel, which is something you don’t see too often in this industry. We all value the opportunity to work together and to provide OHSU, their patients and the surrounding community with a premier, state-of-the-art building.”
The 320,000-square-foot facility will house up to 650 cancer researchers and administrators in space dedicated to myriad research programs focused on early cancer detection, computational biology and immuno-oncology, among others. Beyond state-of-the-art research and wet lab spaces, the building will include administrative offices, a conference center, a rooftop lounge with terrace, street-level retail space and an integrated parking structure. Two floors of the building will be dedicated to the Cancer Early Detection Advanced Research (CEDAR) Center, offering a collaborative environment for the multidisciplinary research team dedicated to early detection cancer research. A 250-seat auditorium and additional meeting rooms create a ground floor Conference Center for a wide variety of events, along with retail spaces and other community-directed amenities that create an area open and available to the public.
Construction is expected to complete in July 2018.
About McCarthy
McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. is the oldest privately held national construction company in the country – with more than 150 years spent collaborating with partners to solve complex building challenges on behalf of its clients. With an unrelenting focus on safety and a comprehensive quality program that spans all phases of every project, McCarthy utilizes industry-leading design phase and construction techniques combined with advanced technology to maximize outcomes. Repeatedly honored as a Best Place to Work and Healthiest Employer, McCarthy is ranked the 15th largest domestic general builder (Engineering News-Record, May 2017). With approximately 1,850 salaried employees, the firm has offices in St. Louis; Atlanta; Collinsville, Ill.; Portage, Ind.; Kansas City, Kan.; Phoenix; Las Vegas; Denver; Dallas, Houston; Albuquerque; San Diego, Newport Beach, San Francisco, San Jose and Sacramento, Calif. McCarthy is 100 percent employee owned. More information about the company is available online at www.mccarthy.com or by following the company on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Google+.
